Buckie RNLI benefit from Burghead Boxing Day swim

Burghead Boxing Day swimmers raised an amazing £10,050 for the 2023 chosen charities, Erskine Veterans Charity - Forres, Moray Befrienders Voluntary Service and Buckie RNLI.

The annual event, which sees brave swimmers jumping from the harbour pier into the cold waters of the North Sea has been running for 38 years and was inspired by a jar of pickled eggs and an RNLI collection tin.

For the residents of Burghead, raising money for the RNLI was thought to be simply a given, and after a rather rough night out on the town the previous evening Lawrence Fraser found himself at the Harbour Inn being dared by the regulars into downing, in one, a pint of super strength pickled egg juice. With the money on the table, and its destination the RNLI collection tin, Lawrence knew he had no other option. He downed the juices and the RNLI were nearly £40 better off as a result.

Although it wasn’t an enjoyable experience, Lawrence thought the price was quite small considering the not inconsiderable sum raised for such a deserving cause, and this led him to thinking how he and his friends could do something a little more enjoyable to raise money for a charity.

Dooking at the pier was thought to be a rite of passage for the boys of Burghead, so seemed the obvious choice, and as nothing else really happens on Boxing Day, the day was decided on.

The first ever Boxing Day Swim at Burghead raised a couple hundred pounds for the RNLI, or ‘lifeboat’ as it was referred to locally, and the rest as they say is history.

Jamie Campbell, Swim President said ‘We are very grateful to all the swimmers, and everyone who came along to support them and the swim on the day. A huge amount was raised, and it will make a big difference to the three chosen charities’

Rebecca Thomson, Fundraising Lead for Buckie RNLI said ‘We are very grateful to everyone involved, especially those who took part in the plunge. The Burghead Swim Committee have raised a fantastic amount of money, and we want to thank them for their kind donation and continued support of the RNLI in saving lives at sea.’

Registration for charities to become beneficiaries of the 2024 swim will open in October.

Notes to editors

· Buckie lifeboat station has been operating since 1860. To learn more about the lifeboat station go to: https://rnli.org/find-my-nearest/lifeboat-stations/buckie-lifeboat-station

RNLI media contacts

Lorna Cameron, Lifeboat Press Officer, 07792799137, [email protected]

Natasha Bennett, RNLI Regional Communications Manager for Scotland, 07826 900639, [email protected]

Tom McGuire, RNLI Regional Communications Manager for Scotland and Ireland, 00353 87 476 4436, [email protected]

Martin Macnamara, RNLI Regional Communications Lead for Scotland, 07920 365929, [email protected]

RNLI Press Office, 01202 336789

Key facts about the RNLI

The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 142,700 lives.

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